Natural Energy
by Minnowfairy
Summary: Kiki the Fox and Gypsy the Cat are O.W.C.A. agents but that's basically where their similarities end. One day, the unlikely two are assigned to be partners. When someone starts cutting down trees in the forest, Gypsy's deepest secret is revealed to both Kiki AND her roommate and crush: Perry the Platypus. Sometimes, the truth needs to come out. Collab with Nightflame203.
1. Chapter 1

Gypsy the Cat sat next to her friend Perry the Platypus. "So... What do you want to do?" she asked awkwardly.

Perry grinned. "Sleep until we're called in. That's what happens every summer."

Gypsy chuckled. "I'm not really tired..."

Perry shrugged. "There's always seeing what Phineas and Ferb are doi-."

Perry's watch began to beep.

Gypsy giggled. "That didn't take very long."

Perry sighed heavily. "Not surprised." He turned on his watch.

"What did he say?" Gypsy asked when Perry turned it off.

"Doof," Perry replied. "We need to go stop him."

Gypsy grinned. "Is it ever not him?" she asked.

Perry paused in thought. "Well… A couple of times."

"So what's he up to?" Gypsy asked.

"Not sure. We need to go find out."

Gypsy smiled excitedly. "This is going to be good! This is my first proper mission."

"Then let's get going," Perry grinned.

Gypsy hesitated. "Are you...taking the hovercar?"

"Do you want me to use it?"

"I'd...rather keep my paws on the floor." Gypsy whipped out her fedora and placed it on her head. "I don't like flying."

Perry nodded. "Okay. Then I won't take it."

"You can," urged Gypsy. "I will be fine running. The earth gives me strength."

Perry raised an eyebrow. "O-kay...?"

Gypsy quickly shut her mouth, and cowered slightly. She'd forgotten that Perry didn't know...

"I-I have a lot of stamina," she covered lamely.

Perry chuckled. "You're one of a kind, Gypsy."

Gypsy smiled shyly, feeling her heartrate increase. "Th-Thanks..."

"Let's get going."

Gypsy gave a sheepish smile. "You get going. I'll meet you there."

Perry nodded, smiling. "Sure thing." He raced off.

Gypsy turned away, cursing herself. Idiot! You can't reveal your powers to Perry, idiot! What if he finds out and hates you?! Then...there'll be absolutely NO chance of anything to happen between you...

Gypsy sighed. "You need to go," she said aloud. "Stop wasting time."

She headed outside and felt her feet connect with the soil. It sent a tingle of energy up her entire body. She felt like she could run to England. The cat immediately sped off after Perry's rocketcar, which she found speeding through the sky. She grinned. She might even make it to D.E.I. BEFORE Perry. THAT would be cool. AND a first. Gypsy grinned, thinking about it. Maybe earth would beat flying for once.

Unfortunately, it didn't. Perry made it to their destination only seconds before Gypsy.

Gypsy growled in frustration. "Aww man!"

Perry laughed. "Keep trying. You're getting better." He patted her on the back. "I still don't get how you can run as fast as a hovercar."

Gypsy shrugged. "Maybe it's just in my blood."

"I guess you ARE a cat..."

Gypsy smiled. "Yeah. Now where's Doofenshmirtz?"

"Let's go see."

Gypsy clutched Perry's arm as they slunk into the lab. "Is it...is it always this dark?" she asked softly.

"Maybe he's not here…"

"I don't know whether to be relieved or disappointed..."

"We'll find him," Perry said firmly.

Gypsy hesitated. "What exactly did Major Monogram say about the situation?"

"He didn't give any specifics," Perry replied warily. "Just that Doof was doing something evil."

"And...did he specifically mention that he's in his building?"

"No…" Perry sighed. "But he almost always is."

"Maybe he really isn't here, then." Gypsy hesitated. "Where else could he be?"

Perry paused. "Let me check and see if the Major knows."

As he did that, Gypsy checked the small date diary she kept on her. "Perry...!"

"Yeah?"

Gypsy turned the diary round, showing Perry the entry for today: _L.O.V.E.M.U.F.F.I.N. BIG MEETING._

Perry grinned sheepishly. "Hey... What do you know?"

Gypsy laughed sheepishly. "Yeah... Guess it's lucky we remembered sooner rather than later."

"It's a good thing you've got that book. Come on, we'd better go. I have a feeling where this'll be."

Gypsy nodded. "Okay."

…

Luckily, THIS time, they were right. They found the abandoned, drafty warehouse full of evil scientists milling about. "Does Major Monogram really expect us to take down all of them by ourselves?" Gypsy asked, quietly and nervously.

"Nope," Perry replied, pointing across the rafter they were sitting on.

Gypsy saw several other animal agents, including a couple she recognised, like Perry's friend Pinky. She exhaled. "Oh, thank goodness."

"Each agent is here for their nemesis," Perry explained. "Like Pinky for Poofenplotz and Terry for Rodney."

"Is Doofenshmirtz here?" Gypsy asked.

"He must be," Perry replied.

They both scrutinised the meeting below.

"Yep, there he is," Perry said finally.

Gypsy followed his gaze and caught sight of their nemesis. "What do we do?" she asked quietly.

"Do what the others do," Perry answered. "Wait for a good moment to attack."

Gypsy hesitated. "I don't do well in large crowds. If everyone attacks at once..."

Perry hesitated as well, unsure of what to say. "Maybe we can wait," he said eventually. "If everyone attacks at once, we'll hold back until we see Doof."

Gypsy bit her lip. "I guess..."

All of a sudden, a dog agent leapt down from the roof and landed on an evil scientist's head.

Perry chucked. "Well, looks like Daniel started it."

Then a female fox agent did the same. Then Pinky and Terry. Soon, everyone except Perry and Gypsy had attacked, causing the room to erupt into chaos.

Gypsy winced. "How do we spot Doofenshmirtz in this?"

"Look for someone who isn't fighting anyone, I guess." Perry suddenly spotted him. "There! Come or stay, I don't mind."

With that, he leapt down into the fray. Gypsy hesitated and swallowed before following. She followed Perry as he ran after Doof.

All three of them stopped in a small room. The door swung shut, and Gypsy spotted the female fox agent again, going against Rodrigo. Perry and Doofenshmirtz began engaging in a lengthy fight, and as Gypsy was going to help, she realised that the fox agent seemed to need more help than him.

However, SHE didn't even seem to know. "What are you doing?!" the fox hissed as Gypsy came over to help.

Gypsy backed up immediately, looking scared. "I..."

Rodrigo seized this opportunity and fled out the door.

"Now look what you did!" the fox snarled, racing after him.

Gypsy hesitated. She didn't want to make things worse, but now, the fox agent COULD use some help, so she ran after the two of them.

Rodrigo had just batted the fox away when Gypsy caught up to them. She used some of her power to grow vines from through the cracks in the concrete floor, which wrapped round Rodrigo's foot.

He blinked. "What just happened?"

"You're trapped," Gypsy stated, more fiercely than she felt.

The fox shot Gypsy a glare. "Why, exactly, are you following?"

"To help you," replied Gypsy, wilting under the fox's glare. "I...felt bad..."

"Well, don't," the fox snapped, pulling out handcuffs.

Gypsy felt indignation overshadow her nervousness. "What is your problem?" she snapped. "I wanted to make up for almost messing you up!"

"Well, I can do this myself!"

"Congratulations for catching him!" Gypsy snapped sarcastically. "Oh, wait..."

The fox growled. "I WOULD have if you hadn't gotten in the way!"

"I had nothing to do with it! He kicked you away! If I hadn't-!"

She broke off quickly; the fox was giving her a strong glare.

"Enough, Kiki," came a familiar voice that helped Gypsy relax a little.

Gypsy exhaled in relief and backed up a step as Perry came over to them.

Kiki turned her glare to him. "What do YOU want, Perry?" she spat.

Gypsy sidled behind Perry for protection; Kiki looked ready to punch someone.

"Gypsy is my friend," Perry replied, not seeming at all fazed. "You should leave her alone."

"She interfered with MY mission!" snarled Kiki.

"We're all kind of sharing a mission," Perry retorted.

"Fine; she interfered with MY fight with MY nemesis!"

"Who is probably the hardest L.O.V.E.M.U.F.F.I.N. scientist to fight," Perry answered, his gaze narrowing slightly.

"I'd say that's Rodney." Kiki clenched her fists. "The fact remains that she had NO right to stick her nose in where she wasn't wanted!"

"You're welcome!" Gypsy snapped.

"And another thing; those vines." Kiki turned her glare onto the cat. "Where did they come from?"

Gypsy bit her lip and immediately froze. "U-Umm..."

"You must have done something," accused Kiki, jabbing her finger at Gypsy. "They couldn't have just grown from the concrete on their own. What did you do?"

"I-I-I j-j-just..."

"Leave her alone, Kiki!" snarled Perry. "And focus on the fact that Rodrigo got away!"

"W-What?!" Kiki gasped.

She spun round and saw the dead vines on the ground. Rodrigo was gone.

Kiki whirled around again and gave Gypsy a death glare. "Stay. Away. From me. And my missions. Understood?"

Gypsy's shoulders slumped. "I-I'm sorry..."

As the fox stormed off, Perry gave her a one-shouldered hug. "Don't worry about Kiki. Okay?"

Gypsy nodded slowly.

Perry frowned. "But why didn't you say it wasn't your fault? It was all of our fault that he got away, because none of us were paying attention to him."

"I just...didn't want to make things worse."

Perry smiled softly. "Alright."

Gypsy sighed. "I just...wanted to help." She miserably kicked the dead vine.

"I understand," Perry said. "It was the same with me. I always wanted to help Kiki and some other agents, but... They never let me, and always got angry with me."

"I'm never going to fit in..."

"I felt the same way," Perry reassured. "This'll get easier, don't worry."

Gypsy sighed heavily and kicked the vine again.

"Stupid thing," she mumbled.

Perry hesitated. "Gyp...where DID that vine come from?"

Gypsy froze, eventually deciding on, "I don't...know..."

"Kiki was right about one thing: they couldn't have grown there on their own."

Gypsy shrugged weakly. "No accounting for nature?"

Perry snorted. "Come on, Gyp. Nature's not THAT random."

Gypsy bit her lip. She had run out of excuses. "I... Uh..."

Perry shook his head. "Alright, I won't force you to say anything you don't want to."

"Th-Thanks." She hesitated and looked down. "Now what?"

Perry shrugged. "Back home. I don't think there's anything else we need to worry about here."

Gypsy nodded slowly. "Alright."

"Let's get going."


	2. Chapter 2

Back at home, Gypsy was feeling tired, so she hopped into her bed in Candace's room and settled down, closing her eyes for a nap.

How had Perry put up with the agents like Kiki? Gypsy herself had not been able to even handle ONE, and yet Perry said most of O.W.C.A. had been like that? Maybe they were just so desperate to prove themselves with Perry as part of O.W.C.A...?

She tried to use that to work out why Kiki hated her.

 _I DID get in the way of her mission… But I really WAS only trying to help, and without my help, Rodrigo would have gotten away that much sooner. Well... He got away anyway, so you weren't MUCH help._

Gypsy exhaled sleepily. _But it wasn't my fault that he got away. It was all of ours for standing around arguing instead of apprehending him straightaway._

She wasn't able to think about it anymore because after that thought, she fell asleep.

Perry smiled as he peered into the room to check on her. Since she arrived, she had become a little sister to him. He knew she was hiding something, but he honestly didn't even care. She would tell him when/if she was ready, and no matter what it was, he knew he would not hate her for it.

Perry sighed before walking away to get to bed himself.

But as he hopped into bed, he heard an unusual sound coming from the backyard, so he got up to see what the boys were up to. Sure enough, they were still outside with their friends. Their invention for the day was still there. Perry blinked as he stared up at the large structure. "Huh...that's a MASSIVE clock..."

Phineas grinned. "Do you think it'll be easier to tell the time now, Buford?"

Buford folded his arms stubbornly. "Sure, but this contraption doesn't teach anyone anything about tellin' the time."

"It certainly SHOWS the time very well," Baljeet chimed in. "I am sure that everybody in Danville can see this."

"What if we named it Big Bob?" Isabella suggested. "Then put him on a really tall pedestal? Danville's own Big Ben?"

"Big Bob?" scoffed Buford. "That's the dumbest name ever."

"Like you could come up with something better," Isabella shot back.

Buford thought for a minute. "Big John," he said eventually.

"After John P. Tristate," Phineas said approvingly. "Nice."

Isabella crossed her arms. "But what about alliteration?"

"Giant John," shrugged Buford.

Perry chuckled and walked back inside to leave the kids to their arguing. He headed to his own bed, tired out from the day. Pretty soon, he was also asleep.

…

Gypsy woke with a start. The room was dark. She glanced up at the clock and saw that it was two in the morning. She sighed and rolled over onto her back. That's what she got for going to bed so early. But she found it hard to go back to sleep, so eventually, she got up and went into the garden. She sat down on the ground and stared up at the stars. She felt flowers begin to grow under her hands and feet. Gypsy smiled and sighed. It was a strange feeling.

She reached out to touch the tree with her paw, and as she felt the bark under her touch, she saw leaves sprouting from some inner branches.

She wished she could tell Perry about this…

She could show Perry the beauty of her power. She could make roses grow through concrete. She could make ivy grow up the side of a building in seconds.

But... He'd think she was a freak.

Heck, at times, even Gypsy HERSELF thought she was a freak. And… Maybe she was.

Then she noticed a small tulip growing just under her right paw. She moved her paw aside and watched as the small flower grew from a stem to a bud to a full pink tulip. Gypsy smiled and rested her head on her paws.

Sometimes, her gift was beautiful. Even if it WAS a little freaky.

She had never wished her gift away, but...sometimes she wished she didn't have it just because she had to keep it from Perry. Gypsy didn't like keeping anything from him. HE always told HER everything. It made her feel like…a bit of a jerk. Even if this was a big secret. It was the biggest secret of her life, and nobody knew about it. And she wanted it to stay that way.

But at the same time, she wished with all her heart that Perry could know. She wanted it so much. But she was afraid of what he would think. What he would say. So for now, she had to keep her gift a secret.

It was best.

…

The next morning, Perry woke Gypsy up earlier than normal. Gypsy groaned; she had fallen asleep outside. "What is it, Perry?"

"You've been called in," Perry replied, frowning slightly. "Why are you outside?"

Gypsy shrugged. "I woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't go back to sleep."

"Fair enough. Anyway, since you don't have a watch, Major Monogram just called me and said he wants you to go in."

"Alright." Gypsy yawned and stretched before getting up. "Not you too?" she asked.

Perry shook his head. "Nope. And I'm not sure why."

Gypsy suddenly felt nervous. "I-Is he going to tell me off for yesterday?"

"I doubt it," Perry reassured.

"H-Has Major Monogram called you in like this before?"

Perry paused. "I'm sure, but I've been part of O.W.C.A. so long, I don't really remember a specific time."

Gypsy sighed. "Well, I better not keep him waiting."

"Good luck," Perry smiled.

Gypsy smiled nervously back, before leaving the backyard.

She made it to O.W.C.A. in no time. The earth had given her the strength to run all the way there, despite the early hour.

Gypsy inhaled deeply when she made it to Major Monogram's office before knocking on the door. Before anyone answered, she spotted Kiki coming towards the corridor towards the office. She stepped back automatically as the fox glared at her.

"H-Hi," Gypsy said nervously.

Kiki crossed her arms and huffed.

Gypsy tried to speak again. "N-Nice day..."

Kiki glared at the ground, still not saying anything.

Gypsy took another step away from her, lest the fox suddenly attacked her.

Luckily, the door opened at that moment. Carl smiled down at the cat and fox. "Great. You're both here."

Gypsy gulped. Those three words didn't sound good...

"Come on in. Major Monogram was expecting you."

Gypsy waited until Kiki had gone in before following her. Major Monogram was seated behind his desk, and he looked up as they came in. Gypsy was too nervous to be able to meet his eyes.

Kiki, however, demanded, "why'd you call us in?"

Major Monogram sighed. "One thing that has been brought to my attention over the last week is that this organisation has a problem with teamwork."

Gypsy bowed her head. Kiki folded her arms and said nothing.

"And not just with you two," the Major continued. "For some reason, almost every agent here is struggling with it."

"With all due respect, sir, why did you choose us, then?" Gypsy asked shyly. "Out of all the agents in O.W.C.A., I mean."

Major Monogram raised an eyebrow. "Because Agent F needs to learn this probably the most, and you seem like a good candidate to help."

Gypsy didn't know whether to feel honoured or even more terrified, especially because Kiki was giving her the most epic glare ever.

"I want you two to work together. Be a team."

Kiki's eyes widened and Gypsy felt nausea rise in her throat, expecting the fox to argue vehemently.

She was not disappointed.

"Sir...!" Kiki immediately began to protest. "I have been doing PERFECTLY fine by myself for the past years...!"

"Until yesterday," Major Monogram reminded her.

"BECAUSE she distracted me!" Kiki snapped.

"She tried to help you," corrected Major Monogram. "If you had let her, Rodrigo probably wouldn't have gotten away."

Kiki snarled and said nothing.

Gypsy, on the other hand, raised her hand timidly. "S-Sir...I would love to do this, but...I think Kiki may kill me."

Major Monogram chuckled. "Don't worry. She won't."

Kiki darkly muttered something, glaring down at the ground.

Gypsy swallowed. "I...I think she might."

"Not as long as she's one of my agents, she won't."

Gypsy glanced across at Kiki, who huffed and stayed silent.

"Any other questions or objections?" Major Monogram asked.

Gypsy looked over at Kiki again, whose position hadn't changed. "I...don't think so, sir."

"Good. Then you're dismissed. I'm going to send Carl along to the gym later, and he better see you two training together."

"Wh-What time?" Gypsy asked.

"Later. Now leave."

Gypsy bit her lip. "Alright, sir. Of course."

The two agents left the room.


	3. Chapter 3

Gypsy clasped her hands together, glancing across at her fellow agent. "K-Kiki..."

Kiki glared up at her. "What?" she snarled.

"D-Do you w-want to g-g-go and train?"

Kiki huffed. "We might as well get it over with."

"O-Okay...I-I wonder how long Major Monogram wants us to be partners?"

"Don't know."

Gypsy sighed, feeling a little braver. "Look, Kiki, I honestly don't like this any more than you do, but we just have to suck it up and maybe even try to learn something."

Kiki scowled. "Fine. So how long have you been an agent?"

"Just a couple of weeks," Gypsy replied. "You?"

"Six years," Kiki replied.

Gypsy's eyes widened. _I haven't even been in this dimension for HALF that time!_ "A-Ah...you're a s-senior agent, then?"

"Yeah." Kiki nodded. "Perry and I graduated at the same time."

"W-Wow..." Gypsy sighed. "I...I really am sorry for yesterday. I didn't mean to mess you up."

Kiki sighed heavily and didn't reply.

"D-Do you accept my apology...?"

"I might as well..." Kiki mumbled.

Gypsy sucked in a breath, unsure of how to take that. "Th-Thank you...?"

By then, they had made it to the gym. "So how much do you know?" Kiki asked, her head whipping over to the cat.

Gypsy stepped back automatically. "A-About what?"

Kiki rolled her eyes. "Fighting. Generally."

"Oh."

 _How am I supposed to tell her that most of my fighting includes using the ground and my powers?_

"Perry's been teaching me," Gypsy replied carefully.

"How much has he taught you?" Kiki demanded.

"Not… Not much."

"Figures." The fox rolled her eyes again. "What attacks, then?"

"Uh..." Gypsy hesitated. "K-Kicking." She did a feeble kick.

Kiki raised an eyebrow. "And defence?"

Gypsy held up her arms next to each other with her fists protecting her face. "This."

Kiki groaned. "I need to give Perry some serious tips, then. How did you even BECOME an agent, then?"

Gypsy hesitated. "Well, I'm not technically a full agent. I'm allowed to go on missions and stuff, but I normally go with Perry to fight Doofenshmirtz every day, and he does most of the fighting there. I'm supposed to learn from him by watching him."

"Ah. Then we've got some serious work to do."

Gypsy nodded slowly. "I guess...but I don't know if I'd be ready to be a full agent. I get nervous on missions if I'm alone, even if I know Perry's nearby."

Kiki raised an eyebrow. "Then let's consider that half the reason we're training. You need to get more confident."

"I..." Gypsy slumped. "I...don't know if I can."

The fox grabbed her wrist. "Let's see."

Gypsy yelped in alarm at Kiki's touch. The fox agent pulled her hand away when she found that it was starting to turn green.

"What the...?!"

Gypsy shrunk, trying not to stare at her hands. _THAT's new..._ "I...I..."

Kiki stared at her with wide eyes, holding her paw. Luckily, the colour was slowly fading.

"That wasn't me," Gypsy said immediately.

"Then what was it?!" Kiki snapped.

Gypsy had no answer to that. She COULDN'T tell Kiki about her powers. If she couldn't even tell Perry, she couldn't tell Kiki.

Unless...

"I...I'm a freak," Gypsy managed to say, before she burst into tears.

Kiki raised an eyebrow. "W-What do you mean?"

Unable to speak through crying, Gypsy held out her hands and made vines grow up from the cracks in the floor, which swayed in the breeze.

Kiki gasped and bit her lip. "Follow me."

Still crying uncontrollably, Gypsy blindly followed Kiki, knowing that the fox was going to tell Major Monogram and out her as a freak.

So she was surprised when she was led outside and behind O.W.C.A. to where there was a small pond.

"What are w-we d-d-d-doing here?" she stammered.

Kiki sat down by the pond, and gestured for Gypsy to do the same. "I figured this would be a better place to talk. It's more private."

Gypsy slowly sat down next to the fox, wiping her eyes. "You're not...g-g-gonna t-tell on me?"

Kiki shook her head. "No." She paused. "Listen... I know that I probably come off as mean, but..." She sighed. "I guess I was just really frustrated in myself for needing help."

Gypsy nodded slowly. "I'd say I understand...but I ALWAYS need help."

"But you've only been an agent for a couple of weeks, and not even officially at that," Kiki pointed out.

"I've always needed help." Gypsy hesitated. "I...I had four siblings. Two sisters and two brothers. The former two were my littermates, and I always relied on them for everything. Then...then it was my brothers whom I relied on. I've always needed help."

"That's what happens when you're not part of an O.W.C.A. family," Kiki replied. "My mother died giving birth to me, and my father is an agent here. I've learned how to be fairly independent."

Gypsy was trying to listen, but mentioning her siblings caused her to dissolve into tears again.

Kiki bit her lip. "W-What happened?" she asked quietly.

"I-I'm from the Second Dimension originally," Gypsy croaked. "My whole family was part of the Resistance, but my parents g-got captured straight after my sisters. M-My brothers and I tried t-to escape but I-I was sucked through a portal. M-My last sight of my home w-was R-Raziel being sh-shot by a N-Normbot."

"Oh..." Kiki hesitated. "Perry told me about the other dimension. I... I'm so sorry."

"I don't even know what happened to them. Or if they're even alive."

The fox closed her mouth, unsure of what to say.

"I'm sorry." Gypsy shook her head. "Anyway, that's how I got these powers. The portal I was shoved through by my parents altered me somehow."

"I see..."

Gypsy hesitated. "I-I know I'm a freak..."

Kiki shook her head. "No, it's an amazing gift. I just… You should work on controlling it now."

Gypsy stared at her. "Y-You...you think it's amazing?"

The fox nodded, smiling. "Yeah."

Gypsy's face slowly broke out into a smile as she took Kiki's paw. "Can I show you something, then?"

Kiki looked a bit hesitant to make physical contact with Gypsy after what had just happened, but she said, "Sure."

Gypsy placed her hands under Kiki's paw, and concentrated. Pretty soon, a small flower began growing from Kiki's palm.

Kiki blinked. "W-W-Wow..."

It bloomed into a small daffodil, which Gypsy then plucked from Kiki's palm, causing a slightly uncomfortable feeling in her hand. Then Gypsy gave it to the fox agent.

"Wow," Kiki breathed again, checking her paw to make sure it hadn't mutated at all.

"Completely safe," Gypsy assured her. "I promise."

"That…really is amazing…"

"That's just the tip of the iceberg." Gypsy sighed. "That's where the vines came from yesterday. Me."

"I had guessed," Kiki chuckled.

"I'm just confirming it." Gypsy clasped her hands together. "You know...you're the person I would least expect to tell my secret to. Even Perry doesn't know."

Kiki raised an eyebrow. "Whoa..."

"I-I'm just terrified that he'll think I'm a freak and hate me..."

"Gypsy, if I don't, then there's no way he will."

Gypsy inhaled shakily. "I just can't tell him right now. Not until I'm fairly sure of what he's going to say."

Kiki nodded. "Alright. I understand."

Gypsy sighed. "I've had these powers for almost a year, now. I tried to supress them when I first got them, so it kind of exploded on me all at once. I do find it difficult to control them because of it."

"That's something to do in your spare time, then," Kiki pointed out.

"I guess...I'm discovering new things all the time. For example, I've never turned someone's hand green before..."

Kiki uncomfortably rubbed her paw against her fur at the memory.

"S-Sorry about that," Gypsy added nervously.

The fox sighed. "Well, no harm was done."

"THIS time..."

Kiki exhaled. "Well, let's go try and train together," she suggested, changing the subject. "Maybe it'll be a bit easier now."

Gypsy smiled weakly. "You're not so scary when you're being nice."

Kiki chuckled. "Let's go."


	4. Chapter 4

They headed back into the gym.

"What are you going to teach me?" Gypsy asked.

Kiki exhaled. "Well, since you don't know much, we'll start with the basics."

Gypsy nodded nervously. "I'll try my best."

"Great," Kiki smiled.

Gypsy inhaled deeply. "I'm ready. What's first?"

As Kiki instructed her, Gypsy began to lose track of time. When they finally took a break, she realized with a start that it was afternoon. She was sweating as she sat down on the edge of the gym. At least she was learning things. Perry would be impressed when he saw her on a mission again! If she trained for the rest of the afternoon, tomorrow, she'd really impress Perry.

That would be awesome.

She knew she had a long way to go before she would even be half as good as Perry, but at least she was making progress. Kiki was a good teacher, although she was a bit intimidating at times. But at least she wasn't full-on scary anymore. Gypsy was glad she had managed to open up to the fox; otherwise, she WOULD still be. And somehow, even KIKI hadn't thought she was a freak. Maybe Perry wouldn't either…?

She'd have to talk to Kiki and find out how well she knew the platypus. Although, judging from yesterday, they didn't exactly like each other much.

 _I wonder why... Maybe I should ask Perry._

 _Or Kiki...?_

Gypsy hesitated. She didn't know how the fox would react if she tried to talk about Perry with her.

She decided to keep the question to herself for now. At least until she saw Perry again.

"Hey." Kiki came over to her. "Ready to keep training?"

Gypsy nodded. "I'm ready."

"Great."

…

By the end of the day, Gypsy was exhausted. She was glad that training was over for the day. She HAD improved, so that was something. Who knew? Maybe in a week, she'd be pretty good at fighting. Maybe she'd even rival Perry in skills. Gypsy chuckled. Then again… In only a week? That probably wouldn't happen.

But she could dream.

Gypsy exhaled and stood up. It was probably time to head home. Perry might be wondering where she was. She remembered that she hadn't actually told him she would be staying at O.W.C.A. for so long. She decided to pull out her phone and call.

He picked it up quickly. "Gypsy?"

"Hey, Perry."

"What happened? You were gone longer than I thought you'd be."

"Yeah, sorry. It's...been a crazy day. I'm coming home now, though."

"Okay. Great!"

Gypsy sucked in air as she ended the call. She had a LOT to tell him...

"I'm heading home now," she said to Kiki. "Is that okay?"

Kiki nodded. "Sure thing."

Gypsy smiled. "Thank you, Kiki. For helping me train."

"Yeah," Kiki sighed, "no problem."

Gypsy frowned. "Is everything okay?"

The fox nodded. "Yeah."

Gypsy smiled briefly. "Okay. See you tomorrow, then."

"Okay." Kiki gave her a brief smile back.

…

Gypsy hopped through the pet flap and shook her fur, clearing the rainwater from it.

Perry greeted her. "Hey!"

Gypsy grinned and continued shaking herself, splashing Perry with rainwater.

"Jerk," Perry grinned back.

"You love me really," laughed Gypsy.

"Maybe," Perry teased.

Gypsy smirked. "I can kick your butt now."

Perry raised an eyebrow. "I see there's a story to tell."

"Yep." Gypsy smirked. "I was training today. Training to fight like you."

"That's awesome, Gyp!"

"With...with Kiki."

Perry froze. "Kiki...?"

"Y-Yeah..." Gypsy waited nervously. "Major Monogram's assigned us to be partners."

"Oh... Poor you."

"Actually, she's really nice." Gypsy smiled timidly. "She's a really good teacher."

Perry raised an eyebrow. "Kiki got along with you?"

Gypsy nodded. "Yeah. She's actually quite nice."

Perry scoffed and said nothing.

Gypsy hesitated. "Perry...what happened between you two?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean: why do you dislike each other so much?" Gypsy looked her best friend in the eyes. "It can't be just because you're the top agent and she isn't."

Perry shook his head. "It's not. And I don't know the full story: all I know is she's bullied me since I first joined O.W.C.A. I gave up trying to befriend her after about three years."

Gypsy glanced down at the ground. So Perry didn't know the full story. All he knew was that Kiki bullied Perry. Exactly WHY she bullied Perry, he didn't seem to know. So Gypsy knew she would have to as Kiki eventually.

She wasn't excited to. But at the same time, she desperately wanted to know. However, she didn't know how Kiki would reply. Just because the fox was currently being friendly with her, that didn't mean they were actually FRIENDS. Kiki just...didn't glower at her any more. That was it.

Gypsy exhaled. "Sorry..."

"For what?" Perry asked.

"That you went through that."

"Oh, it's fine." Perry waved his paw. "I'm used to it."

"Yeah, but you shouldn't have to be..."

Perry sighed. "Well, I am."

Gypsy hung her head. "Okay."

Perry hugged her. "Thanks."

Gypsy smiled. "For what?"

"For being concerned."

"I will always be concerned about you." Gypsy hugged him tighter. "You're like a brother to me."

Perry smiled. "And you're like a sister to me."

Gypsy beamed. "Thanks." She yawned widely and pulled away, feeling her muscles aching. "I need to go to bed..."

Perry chuckled. "Alright."

"Kiki really worked me hard..."

"Sounds accurate enough."

Gypsy snorted. "You've known her for six years, then?"

"Oh, more than that. We trained together for years beforehand."

"Oh, wow..." Gypsy hesitated. "So you've been disliking each other for a long time, then?"

Perry sighed. "Yeah."

Gypsy interlocked her fingers. "So what did you do today?"

Perry shrugged. "I didn't get called in today, so I spent most of the day with the boys."

Gypsy smiled. "That sounds nice."

"It was," he chuckled.

Gypsy sighed. "I really wish I could spend some time with Candace. She's my owner, and yet I never get to spend any time with her."

Perry hesitated. "Just... Give it time."

"Alright..." Gypsy yawned. "I'm tired."

Perry nudged her towards the stairs. "Night."

Gypsy giggled. "By the way, you might want to look out on the front lawn."

Perry raised an eyebrow. "Why..?"

"Just do it." Gypsy disappeared upstairs.

"Okay..." Perry blinked before heading outside.

He stared at the lawn. Somehow, the grass was covered with small red roses. "Whoa..." he breathed.

How had THAT happened?! The yard was noticeably rose free only an hour ago. Had Gypsy done this somehow? Perry smiled. That would have been impressive. But she had somehow done it in an hour…? He made a mental note to ask her.

But no matter what had happened, it was still a very beautiful thing for Gypsy to do.

Perry grinned and padded back inside.

"Thanks, Gypsy," he whispered.


	5. Chapter 5

"You're really getting good," Kiki commented the next day.

Gypsy smiled proudly. "Thanks. But it's mostly your teaching."

Kiki chuckled. "Still. It's been under forty-eight hours."

Gypsy nodded. "Yeah, it has. So are we going to go on mission as partners anytime soon?"

Kiki paused. "Maybe. But not for at least another day."

"Fair enough." Gypsy hesitated. "So... Why have you never gotten along with Perry?" she asked hesitantly.

Kiki stared at her. "What?"

Gypsy immediately cringed. "Sorry if it isn't my place, but...Perry told me you used to bully him. I don't want to judge you until I hear your side of the story, but I understand...if you don't want to tell me."

Kiki bit her lip and sighed. "It's...really complicated," she said finally.

"I-If you want to tell me, that's fine. I'll listen. But if you don't want to tell me, that's also fine."

"I…I don't think I can say yet. It's, like I said, complicated, and..." Kiki sighed again. "And it's also fairly embarrassing."

Gypsy giggled slightly. "Okay. If you ever want to talk, I won't judge."

Kiki raised an eyebrow and scoffed. "Well, you say that now..."

"Hey, YOU didn't judge ME," reminded Gypsy. "And I told you about my powers."

Kiki laughed weakly. "Yeah, well... You're friends with Perry, aren't you?"

Gypsy nodded. "He's like a brother to me."

She didn't mention her gigantic, ever-growing crush on the platypus.

"Then this'll be even stranger for you."

"Oh." Gypsy blinked. "Why?"

Kiki chuckled weakly. "Just... Because."

Gypsy frowned. "Okay. If you're sure you don't want to talk."

"Not right now."

"Fair enough."

Kiki cleared her throat. "So... Is there anything YOU'd like to learn?"

"Well-."

She was interrupted by a massive crash from outside. Gypsy gave a small scream. "What was that?!"

"Let's go see."

Kiki raced off. Gypsy hurriedly followed at a slower pace. She gasped when they reached the front of the building.

"What is that?!" she yelled.

"Rodrigo," Kiki snarled.

"Wh-What's the machine he's coming out of?" Gypsy asked fearfully.

"I don't know."

"You've never seen it before?"

"No, I haven't!" Kiki snapped. "Do you think I would have said that I didn't know if I had seen it before?"

"Don't snap at me; I'm trying to help!" Gypsy snapped back.

"I know you are!" Kiki breathed out deeply.

"Let's get him!" Gypsy yelled suddenly, racing towards the giant machine.

"Gypsy, wait!" Kiki called. "I don't think he's alone!"

But Gypsy ignored her and continued running. As Rodrigo turned to face her, she leapt towards him, intending to attack him. But instead, a scientist with a creepy furred arm appeared and punched her in the stomach with it, causing her to fly backwards and hit the ground hard, groaning in pain.

Kiki groaned in frustration before racing to help.

David Bringdown lifted his animal arm and slapped Gypsy hard around the face, before being tackled by Kiki. Gypsy watched in amazement as the fox held the scientist off for a large amount of time.

She backed away as she spotted more and more evil scientists coming out of the machine. Acting without thinking, she created vines around Kiki and lifted her up, out of harm's way.

"Gypsy!" Kiki hissed.

"You're safe now!" Gypsy called up to her.

"Gypsy, get me down! I can hold my own!"

"Not against so many!" Gypsy called back.

All of a sudden, she spotted two scientists coming towards her. She dropped her concentration for just a second in order to beat them, away, but then Doctor Bringdown wrapped his animal arm around her, keeping her down. She screamed and struggled, forgetting that stress could do things to natural things around her.

After a little bit, Kiki also let out a scream. "Gypsy!" she snapped.

Gypsy's concentration finally completely snapped under her terror, and the vines she had created sunk back into the ground. She screamed and struggled as hard as she could.

"Gypsy!"

Gypsy continued screaming.

Luckily, that was when help finally arrived. Perry leapt onto Bringdown's back and wrenched him away from Gypsy.

"Are you okay?!"

Gypsy started crying hysterically as she clutched Perry tightly. "I-I-I-I-I'm f-f-f-fine..."

"No, you're not. Let's get inside. The other agents can take care of the other scientists."

Glancing into the fray to vainly find Kiki, Gypsy allowed Perry to lead her inside.

"What happened?" Perry asked concernedly when she was sitting on a couch.

Gypsy was crying too hard to reply, and even if she could, how could she explain?

"Gypsy, please," Perry begged.

Gypsy shook her head. "K-Kiki," she stammered. "M-Make s-s-s-sure sh-she's okay."

"What do you mean?" Perry blinked.

Gypsy pointed outside with a shaking paw. "M-Make sure sh-she's okay."

"I'm staying here with you," Perry said firmly. "If she's in trouble, another agent will see."

"PLEASE!" shrieked Gypsy, distraught. "P-P-Please!"

"Gypsy!" Perry hugged her tightly.

"Please j-j-just make s-s-s-sure sh-sh-she's okay..."

Perry exhaled. "Gyp..."

"P-P-Please..."

"Fine." Perry sighed and laid her down on the couch.

"Th-Thank you." Gypsy smiled weakly.

"Stay right here," Perry instructed.

Gypsy nodded. "O-Okay."

Perry exhaled and walked back outside. "Kiki!" he called, racing back into the battle.

He found the fox tangled up in vines. "Perry!" Kiki snapped when she saw him. "Get me out of this!"

"How did that happen?!"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Kiki gave a scream. "Please hurry-there are thorns! Ow, ow, OWWW!"

Perry immediately tried to rip the vines. They were deadened, so it was fairly easy. Kiki got to her feet, wincing at the hundreds of little cuts all over her body.

"Do you really not know how that happened?" Perry blinked.

"No!" she snapped at him, trying to hide the fact that she really did know. "How would I?!"

"Because you're normally more alert in a fight!"

"They're VINES!" Kiki yelled. "They grew from the ground!"

She growled in frustration and stormed back to the building.

Gypsy glanced up as Kiki stormed in. She reached out with her paw. "Kiki!" she called.

Kiki growled at her. "I TOLD you to try and control your powers!"

"I did!" Gypsy said defensively. "I-I did that on purpose."

"You...did THIS..." She gestured to her many cuts, "on purpose?"

"Wait..." Gypsy blinked, registering the fox's appearance. "How'd you get so hurt?!"

"Your vines grew thorns," Kiki snapped.

Gypsy's eyes widened. "They...they what?!"

"You heard me!"

Gypsy's paws flew to cover her mouth. "K-Kiki, I-I'm so sorry! It must have been when that guy grabbed me... Stress can cause my powers to get out of control..."

"Exactly!" Kiki snapped. "Get your powers under control!"

"They normally are!" Gypsy cried. "Th-This rarely ever happens! Kiki...I-I didn't mean it!"

The fox just snarled and walked away.

"Kiki, please don't be mad!" Gypsy called desperately after her.

Either Kiki didn't hear or ignored her because she kept walking.

"KIKI!"

But she was gone. Gypsy lay back down on the couch and sobbed. And that was when Perry found her.

"Gypsy...?"

She continued to cry hard, her eyes squeezed shut.

Perry sat down next to her. "Gypsy?"

"I'm the worst person ever," she sobbed.

"What...?! No, you're not!"

"Kiki hates me!"

"That does NOT mean you're a bad person!"

"I made Kiki hate me!" wailed Gypsy.

"Sh..." Perry soothed. "I doubt you did anything wrong."

There was nothing Gypsy could say to that, except the one unutterable fact that it wasn't true.

Perry hesitated. "Do you...really think you did?"

Gypsy nodded wordlessly.

"Well… What?"

Gypsy buried her head in her paws and didn't answer. How could she? What could she say?

Perry rubbed her back. "Gyp?"

"I DON'T KNOW!" she wailed.

"Okay, okay..." Perry pulled her into a hug.

"I-I'm sorry. I'm s-s-so pathetic..."

"No, you aren't," Perry said firmly.

"Wh-Why am I c-c-crying so m-m-much then?"

"Because you just went through something that hurt you," Perry soothed. "Crying doesn't make you pathetic."

Gypsy sniffled. "I-I'm sorry..."

"No, it's okay." Perry began to rock her.

"I-Is the battle over?"

"Yeah. It was practically done when I went back out there."

Gypsy inhaled shakily. "C-Can w-we go home?"

"Sure thing, Gyp."

"Th-Thanks."

Perry gently let go of his friend. "Let's go."

Gypsy nodded and got shakily to her feet.

 _What happened?_ Perry thought concernedly. His best friend could barely walk. And then there was Kiki. She had seemed EXTREMELY angry. Was it really all to do with the vines? And if so, how was Gypsy connected? WAS she connected?

He realised that this was the second natural phenomenon to occur in under twelve hours. First all the roses, then the vines. What was going on? Whatever it is, he couldn't shake the feeling that it was connected to Gypsy and the big secret he suspected she had.

Perry bit the inside of his beak. He needed to ask her about it when she was doing a bit better. He needed to put this mystery to rest.

Even if Gypsy didn't want to tell him.


	6. Chapter 6

On the way home, Gypsy could feel herself getting weaker somehow. It wasn't just trauma...it felt like some big natural thing was dying. By the time they reached the house, she was practically putting all her weight on Perry.

"Are you okay?" Perry asked her worriedly. "You don't seem-."

Suddenly, searing pain shot through Gypsy. She let out a scream.

"Gypsy?!" Perry gasped.

Something BIG had just died. A tree, most likely. When trees fell, the pain was excruciating. Like this. Luckily, though, the pain died down just long enough for her to pass out, collapsing sideways.

...

When Gypsy woke up again, she was in her bed. She groaned, lifting her hand to touch her head, which was not hurting anymore, thankfully. She glanced to her side and spotted Perry sitting next to her, a concerned look on his face. "Perry?" she croaked.

"Hey." Perry smiled softly. "Are you okay?"

"Mmm..." Gypsy inhaled deeply. "How'd I get here?"

"I carried you. Gyp, what happened?"

"I..." Gypsy inhaled again. "I...um..."

"Please. Please tell me."

"I...I felt pain."

Perry raised an eyebrow and shook his head. "That's not good enough. Gypsy, I know you've been hiding something."

Gypsy felt another stab of pain in her chest, but she ignored it and faced Perry. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Perry stared steadily back. "That's a lie. Please, tell me what's going on."

Gypsy remained silent.

"Please, Gypsy! Why can't you just tell me?"

"I just can't!" Gypsy turned over in her bed. "I'm sorry."

"Gypsy." Perry placed a paw on her shoulder. "Whatever it is, I won't judge you for it."

"Yes you will."

"No, I won't," Perry said firmly. "Please, just tell me!"

"I-I can't. I just can't."

"Why not?"

The cat didn't reply.

"Gypsy," Perry said firmly.

"Please can't you just respect my decision?"

"Gypsy, I'm WORRIED about you!"

"I know, but this isn't something you need to worry about, okay?"

"I don't think I believe that."

"I would tell you if you needed to worry."

"Gypsy, whatever this secret is caused you to faint!"

"It doesn't hurt anyone but me!" Gypsy let out a choked sob. "A-And Kiki..."

Perry rubbed her shoulder.

"I hate keeping this from you, but I just can't tell you."

"Gypsy, I am going to find out one way or another. You might as well tell me."

Gypsy exhaled. "I...I'm terrified, Perry."

"Of what?" Perry asked gently.

"O-Of m-my...p-p-powers."

"Powers?"

Gypsy rolled over to face Perry, held out her paw, and made a rose grow from the centre of it. "This."

Perry blinked. "Whoa..."

"The portal I came through to get to this dimension...it altered me. Gave me these powers."

"So that's where those roses and vines came from..."

"Y-Yeah."

Perry smiled. "That's amazing, Gypsy."

Gypsy squeezed her eyes shut. "No. It isn't."

"Yes, it is. What makes you think it isn't?"

"It's...dangerous. The vines I used to keep Kiki safe grew thorns."

"That's why you should work on controlling them..."

"Don't you think I've tried?!" Gypsy glared at Perry. "I've tried harder than I've ever tried with ANYTHING else in my entire life! It's been almost a year since I got these powers, and they still spiral far out of control when I'm under stress!"

"Okay!" Perry held his paws out in defence. "I'm just trying to help."

"Don't!" Gypsy snapped. "I don't want you getting hurt like I hurt Kiki!"

"I don't care about getting hurt," Perry said firmly. "Not if it's to help you."

Gypsy began crying again. "Oh, Perry..."

Perry hugged her gently. "What?"

Gypsy inhaled shakily. "N-Nothing."

Perry kissed her forehead. "You can tell me."

"I..." Gypsy inhaled again. "S-Since we're confessing things, I may as well get another thing off my chest."

"What?" asked Perry gently.

Gypsy breathed out deeply. This was it. "I-I have feelings for you," she blurted out.

Perry blinked. "W-What do you mean?"

"I don't just see you as a brother," clarified Gypsy hurriedly, a red blush spreading over her cheeks. "You're my best friend, but I-I want to be more than that. It's...it's all I want. I'm sorry if this comes as a shock, but...this is one thing I don't want to hide anymore."

Perry paused, and Gypsy froze, beginning to regret what she said.

"O-Oh my gosh...I...f-forget what I just said." She buried her head in her paws, cursing herself.

But Perry gently lifted her head out of her paws again. "Gypsy..."

Gypsy gazed at him, looking into his sparkly eyes. "P-Perry...?"

He just lightly kissed her lips. It didn't last long, but it was still a kiss.

Gypsy was shaking slightly when he pulled away. "P-Perry...!"

Perry blushed a bright red. "S-S-Sorry... D-Did you n-not want me to d-do that?"

Gypsy shook her head furiously. "N-No..." She smirked slightly. "You beat me to it." She paused. "S-So do you feel the s-same...?"

Perry smiled and nodded. "I do, Gypsy. I wish I could have told you sooner, but I didn't want to ruin our friendship if you didn't feel the same."

Gypsy blushed. "W-Well, that's i-ironic."

Perry grinned sheepishly. "Isn't it?"

Gypsy leaned forward and kissed his forehead. "I'm glad," she said. "I'm glad we got that off our chests."

Perry grinned. "Yeah."

Gypsy hesitated. "So...where do we go from here?"

Perry pressed his forehead to hers. "Well, where do you want to go?"

"Well, I..." Gypsy hesitated again. "I...I'd L-LIKE to be..."

"Yeah?"

"Officially more than friends...?"

Perry grinned and pulled her into another short kiss. "I'd like that."

Gypsy beamed. "A-As would I."

Perry smiled and hugged her tightly.

"Oh, I almost forgot." Gypsy grinned. "Did you like what was on the lawn yesterday?"

"I loved it," Perry grinned back.

"I can do anything like that for you," Gypsy said, smiling. "Any flower, any tree, any plant."

Perry chuckled. "That seems more like a gift than a curse, Gyp."

"Mostly, it is." Gypsy hesitated. "But...recently, I've had less control. Normally, I've been really good at keeping incidents to a very low minimum, but...I don't know..."

Perry bit the inside of his beak. "Gypsy... W-What happened earlier? When we got here?"

Gypsy hung her head. "This gift...doesn't come without a price. I feel the pain of nature around me. Grass being stepped on, that's fine. But even picking a natural flower can give me pain. That pain I had earlier...it must have been from a tree falling. If enough trees fall in my vicinity, I-I...I could..."

"You could what?" Perry asked quietly, not sure he wanted to know the answer.

"I...could fall into a coma," Gypsy finished reluctantly. "Or even...die."

Perry squeezed his eyes shut.

"That's the price my gift comes with," Gypsy said quietly.

"Then we need to figure out why that tree fell."

"Trees just fall sometimes, Perry." Gypsy clasped her hands together nervously. "I-I have a fear of trees sometimes."

"Understandably." Perry exhaled. "But still...I think we should still investigate why that tree fell. There's no strong wind or storm. Someone might have cut it down. I don't want it to happen again. You shouldn't have to go through that pain again."

Gypsy smiled weakly. "T-Thanks, Perry."

"Right now, you should rest." Perry smiled widely. "Girlfriend."

Gypsy grinned and blushed. "O-Okay." She attempted a smirk back. "Boyfriend."

Perry chuckled and kissed her forehead. "Get some rest," he said again, before going to the door, switching out the light, and leaving the room.

Gypsy smiled and rested her head on her paws.

PERRY WAS HER BOYFRIEND!

That conversation hadn't gone as disastrously as she was worried it would. Although she was still worried about how Perry viewed her, now that her powers were no longer a secret to him. _Relax, Gypsy. It's not a big deal._

 _Actually, it is. Perry's opinion matters most to you, and do you know why?_ _It's because you're in love with him._

 _And he loves you,_ Gypsy reminded herself. _This doesn't make him care for you any less._

 _Actually, he didn't say he loves you. All he said was that he has feelings for you. That doesn't mean he loves you._

Gypsy exhaled. And NOW she was arguing with herself.

 _You're growing insane._

"Shut up," she snapped quietly aloud. "And go to sleep."

She closed her eyes and forced herself to rest. Luckily, she was tired enough that sleep came easily.


	7. Chapter 7

Meanwhile, Perry had decided to get back to O.W.C.A. HQ. He did want to check in with Kiki. Now that he knew about Gypsy, he couldn't help wondering if Kiki did too.

The fox was sitting in a dorm room when he found her.

"Hey," he said. "Can we talk?"

Kiki glared up at him. "About what?"

"About what happened during the battle. With the vines."

Kiki scowled and said nothing.

"Kiki, please," sighed Perry.

"What about what happened earlier?" the fox finally demanded.

"Do you know where the vines came from?"

Kiki hesitated and stared at the ground. "Well… Do you?"

"Kiki, please stop stalling!"

"But I need to know!" Kiki snapped. "Do you know, or are you just asking to try and find out?"

"I want to know if you know!" Perry snapped back.

"Yes, I do, but unless you do, too, I'm not telling!"

Perry folded his arms. "Are you trying to protect someone?"

"Yes," Kiki said firmly.

"And..." Perry hesitated. "Is that person Gypsy?"

Kiki hesitated as well. "Y-Yes," she said finally.

"So you know about her powers, then?"

Kiki paused. "Yeah. D-Did she tell you, then?" Kiki twisted nervously.

Perry nodded. "Just a bit ago."

"What happened? She seemed REALLY convinced that she couldn't tell you."

Perry rubbed the back of his neck. "She kind of…didn't really have a choice anymore."

"You pressured her? Did you know she was hiding something?"

Perry bit the inside of his beak. "Yeah…"

Kiki scowled and folded her arms. "So now you have the answer to your question, leave me alone."

Perry hesitated. "Fine," he reluctantly said.

Kiki turned away from him, wincing as one of her cuts flared up.

"You should get some medical help..."

Kiki shook her head. "I've already been to Apollo and he prescribed me some kind of cream, but he's already suspicious of me because I refused to tell him what caused the cuts."

"Oh." Perry hesitated. "Alright. Bye, then, I guess."

"Yeah," Kiki mumbled. "Get going."

Perry rolled his eyes and left the room. She was frustrating sometimes. And when she wasn't being frustrating, she was being mean.

Perry exhaled. He had gotten used to it, but still…

He wished he and Kiki could be friends. Kiki was one of O.W.C.A.'s top five agents, and therefore very highly skills. He knew they could have been friends, if it weren't for Kiki hating him so much. But why DID she hate him so much? It had been years, and he still didn't know. He couldn't just ask her; she wouldn't tell HIM. Why… It was unknown.

Maybe he could ask Gypsy to ask her? They were a bit friendlier.

 _But not recently,_ he reminded himself. _Remember Gypsy's crying fit yesterday?_

Perry sighed. Maybe he should just let it be. Maybe it was something that would never be revealed to him.

And… If it wasn't, he'd be okay.

He decided to head home and check on Gypsy.

The she-cat was still asleep in bed when he found her. He smiled and sat down on the bed next to her, stroking her back.

She was beautiful. He had always seen it, but now that they were a couple, he appreciated it even more. Perry smiled and lightly nuzzled her fur. They were a couple now. It was hard to believe.

But he was happy.

…

When Gypsy woke up, she was surprised to feel a paw on her. She stirred and glanced up, smiling. "Hey."

Perry smiled back at her. "Hey. How are you feeling?"

"Better," she yawned. "I have a bit of a headache though."

"Oh." Perry hesitated. "Is there anything I can get to help?"

Gypsy shook her head. "Just a bit of fresh air. The earth can heal me."

"Okay."

Gypsy smirked. "Just "okay"?"

Perry grinned. "Your powers are just gonna take a bit of getting used to."

"Then why don't you take me outside and I'll show you some things I can do?"

"That sound nice," Perry smiled.

Gypsy smiled back. "Good. Lead the way."

Perry got up from the bed and helped Gypsy up as well. Then they headed out into the front yard.

Perry sat down on the grass. Gypsy stayed standing, breathing in the fresh air. "I feel better already."

"Great," Perry exhaled.

She sat down next to him and linked paws with him. She hesitated before resting her head on his shoulder.

"Even nature looks so much better when I'm with you," she murmured.

Perry smiled and kissed her forehead. "I...don't know if this is too soon to say, but I want to be honest." Gypsy inhaled deeply. "I love you, Perry."

Perry blinked and beamed. "I love you, too, Gypsy."

Gypsy sighed happily and squeezed Perry's paw. "Part of me was worried you didn't," she admitted.

"I will always love you."

Gypsy beamed. Perry smiled, leaned forward, and kissed her. Gypsy relaxed into it. It was their longest kiss yet. And arguably their best.

When they broke apart, Gypsy's cheeks were light red. She beamed at Perry. "Th-That was wonderful."

"I agree," Perry beamed back.

Gypsy blushed. "C-Could we do it a-again...?"

Perry smirked and kissed her again.

When they broke apart again, Gypsy created a small rose and handed it to him. Perry smiled and linked hands with her. "Thank you, Gypsy."

Gypsy smiled and nuzzled against him. "No problem. I can do it whenever you want."

Perry chuckled. "Only if you want to."

"Of course I do." Gypsy beamed and hugged Perry. "I'll always want to-."

She suddenly let out a cry of pain and clutched her chest, pulling back.

"Gypsy?!" Perry gasped.

"I'm sorry." Gypsy inhaled sharply. "I-I'm fine."

"What happened?" Perry asked anxiously.

"Just some pain," Gypsy croaked. "I'm fine."

"But what caused the pain?"

"Something natural dying..."

Perry rocked her gently. "I'll go see what it was."

"It must have been something fairly large to cause that amount of pain..."

Perry rested her on the grass. "Okay. I'll be back soon." He lightly kissed her forehead.

Gypsy smiled and lay down in the grass, watching as Perry headed off.

What was going on? That felt like another tree. It wasn't as bad as before, so perhaps it was a smaller tree. But still… That had been painful. Why were so many trees falling? Maybe it was good thing Perry was going to check...

She closed her eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep.


	8. Chapter 8

Perry decided it would be best to get some help: the only other person who knew about Gypsy's powers. He'd have to ask Kiki. And he was NOT looking forward to it.

The fox was in her cubicle. Perry hesitated before knocking on the wall. Kiki turned, before spotting Perry. She sighed. "What do you want?"

"Gypsy," Perry replied. "Did she tell you the weakness with her powers?"

Kiki shook her head. "No..."

Perry bit the inside of his beak. "She feels pain when a plant in her vicinity dies. Twice now, she's felt immense amounts of it. That means it's from trees. And... Two trees nearby cut down in one day? I think something's up."

Kiki hesitated. "Hmm... What could be causing those trees to fall?"

"That's what I want to find out," Perry answered. "And… I need help."

Kiki thought she had heard wrong. "YOU need HELP?"

"Yeah." Perry nodded. "There's no way I can do this by myself, and... Gypsy's life could be on the line, here."

Kiki raised an eyebrow. "So what are you saying? Please be clear."

"Will you help me figure out what's causing these trees to get cut down?"

"Why would I want to help YOU save GYPSY?" Kiki asked disdainfully. "I don't like either of you."

"But you're the only one here other than me who knows about Gypsy's power," Perry pressed. "And I said her life could be on the line. I had assumed you wouldn't want an innocent person to die, whether you like her or not."

Kiki hesitated. Finally, she said, "Why do you always have word things in such ways it makes me feel bad?"

Perry shrugged. "Because I love Gypsy and I need to save her."

Kiki bit her lip. "You...love her?"

Perry nodded, a genuine expression on his face. "I do. I love her."

The fox sighed. "Fine," she grumbled finally, standing up.

Perry smiled gratefully. "Thank you."

"Let's just go."

"Okay."

Perry exhaled and began to walk out of O.W.C.A, Kiki following.

"So where are we going?" Kiki asked.

"I'm not sure," Perry admitted. "But we might as well as start with the forest."

"I guess that makes sense."

Perry exhaled. "I hope Gypsy'll be okay..."

Kiki didn't say anything.

Perry hesitated. "Kiki... Why do you hate me so much?"

When she didn't reply straight away, Perry added, "I mean, I don't remember doing anything so bad to you to warrant all those years of bullying."

Kiki sighed and stared at the ground. "I...don't know if I can say, Perry. It's embarrassing... Especially if you and Gypsy are in a relationship now..."

Perry blinked. "What does my and Gypsy's relationship have to do with anything?"

Kiki bit her lip. "N-No reason."

"Kiki, please. I...I deserve to know."

The fox sighed heavily. "Now...isn't the time."

"Then when is?" Perry demanded. "When?"

"When we're safely back at O.W.C.A. and there's no threat!" Kiki snapped back.

"No threat," snorted Perry. "When is there ever NOT a threat?"

"This is a lot harder to tell you than you'd think, Perry!"

Perry growled. "It's not fair on me if you can't even tell me why you hate me!"

"I DON'T hate you!"

"Could have fooled me," scoffed Perry. "Constant bullying since we started training"

Kiki growled in frustration and stormed ahead.

"Real mature!" Perry snapped after her.

But she didn't reply.

Perry stopped walking and turned a right angle, walking off in that direction. Obviously, she didn't want to be near him right now. And Perry didn't want to be near her.

…

Kiki stopped walking when she heard the sounds of a machine. _Wh-What's that?_ She inhaled before stepping out into a clearing.

And she came face to face with the biggest axe she had ever seen. It was connected to a huge machine... And there was someone in it.

"Rodrigo," hissed Kiki.

Luckily, the scientist didn't notice her, as he manoeuvred the machine and sliced clean through a tree.

Immediately, there was a scream coming from nearby.


	9. Chapter 9

When Perry heard the scream, he raced back to his house.

...and he found Gypsy writhing in pain in the front yard.

"GYPSY!" Perry gasped, rushing over to her.

"Perry!" Gypsy screamed. "PERRY!"

Perry held her tightly and rocked her.

"It hurts!" Gypsy cried.

"Sh..."

Gypsy continued to breathe heavily. "It's g-g-getting worse..."

"I got Kiki to help. She'll figure this out."

Gypsy's chest was heaving. "I don't know if I can bear this much longer, Perry..."

"Just hang on," Perry whispered. "Please, Gyp."

Gypsy clutched Perry tightly. "I'll...try..."

Perry rocked her. He couldn't leave her now. _Please, Kiki… Hurry up…_

Luckily, Kiki burst into view at that very moment. "It's Rodrigo!" she gasped. "He's cutting down trees in the forest. I don't know why he is, but I saw him!"

"That explains the pain," Perry said worriedly, glancing down at his shuddering girlfriend. He bit his lip. "I can't leave her alone. Can you stop him by yourself?"

Kiki shook her head. "The machine he has is immense. AND it's got, like, four axes on it."

"Then get others to help!"

"Just let me talk to Gypsy," Kiki said firmly.

"I don't think she's-."

Gypsy suddenly coughed. "K-Kiki...?"

Kiki bent down. "Hey."

Perry hesitated. "I'll be over there," he said quietly, getting up and walking to the house, where he leaned against the wall.

Gypsy smiled weakly. "H-Hi."

"Perry told me the problem with your powers..."

Gypsy let out a weak sigh. "Yeah...it's a real pain in the butt."

Kiki chuckled softly. "I just wanted to say... I'm…sorry for how I acted this morning."

"I-It's okay. It was understandable."

Kiki sighed heavily. "I just... I think... When we met, I was jealous of you... It built up over the last couple of days, and... I had my chance to let it out earlier."

Gypsy blinked. "J-Jealous? O-O-Of me?"

The fox glanced at the ground. "You... You're so close to Perry..."

Understanding dawned on Gypsy, and her eyes widened. "Oh...so...so THAT'S why you bullied Perry..."

Kiki bit her lip. "If we make it out of this alive, I promise I'll fully explain why to you. Perry, too. He... He deserves to know."

Gypsy nodded. "I-I get it. So Perry told you about...us?"

"Yeah." Kiki smiled weakly. "Congrats."

"How… How do you feel about that?"

Kiki exhaled. "I had a feeling he wouldn't fall for me... It... It's still disappointing, though."

Gypsy nodded slowly. "Kiki...I'm sorry."

Kiki chuckled. "Just... Work on controlling your powers under stress."

"I meant about the Perry situation." Gypsy grinned weakly. "But I am also sorry about the thorns."

Kiki hugged her. "It's okay. I can't control his feelings."

Gypsy stiffened briefly. "You're...hugging me..."

Kiki laughed. "Do you not want me to?"

"I just..." Gypsy let out a giggle. "I always thought you were the kind of person who never touches someone unless you're hitting them."

"It's just hard for me to make friends."

"No offense, but I can see why."

Kiki chuckled. "Yeah..."

Gypsy grinned weakly, before suddenly letting out a sharp gasp of pain.

Kiki inhaled just as sharply. "Don't worry, Gypsy," she said, backing away. "I'm going to get help and stop this, okay?"

Gypsy staggered to her feet. "I'm coming with you."

"Absolutely not," Kiki hissed. "You need to stay here."

"I know you don't want it, but I can protect you. If this machine is as deadly as you say, two heads will be better than one, especially when one of those heads can control nature."

"You're too weak right now," Kiki insisted.

"Then I'll help from the sidelines." Gypsy looked determined. "I won't let you face that thing alone."

Perry, who had started walking back over, heard this. "Gypsy…"

"You can't talk me out of this, Perry," Gypsy said, stumbling a little as she turned to face him. "I have to do this."

Perry bit the inside of his beak. "Then I'm coming, too."

"I'm fine with that, of course, but..." Gypsy trailed off as she glanced at Kiki.

Kiki sighed. "I'm gonna need all the help I can get," she said reluctantly.

Gypsy beamed. "Great!"

She suddenly stumbled, and both Perry and Kiki reached out to catch her at the same time.

"If you're sure about this..." Perry hesitated.

"Look, we need to succeed at this," insisted Gypsy. "Not just because I will probably die if Rodrigo succeeds, but because cutting down so many trees will damage the ecosystem, especially animals who live in there, some whom are retired O.W.C.A. agents."

Perry exhaled. "Okay... Let's go."

The three animals began to run, Gypsy more slowly than the others. Finally, they reached the forest.

Gypsy inhaled sharply and fell behind a little. Perry slowed down to walk next to her. "You okay?"

"I just feel a bit weaker. Plants must be dying at an extraordinary rate, because usually the forest gives me strength."

"We'll stop this," Perry said quietly. "I promise."

Gypsy smiled weakly. "Thank you." She gripped Perry's paw.

"This way," Kiki said, continuing to run.

The cat and platypus followed Kiki into a large clearing.

"Holy...!" Gypsy gasped.

It was the machine Kiki had seen before. Two more trees were missing, stumps in their place. And the machine was gearing up to chop another down.

"NO!" Gypsy screamed, racing towards the machine.

"Gypsy!" Perry yelled, running after her.

But Gypsy was too late to prevent the machine from slicing through another tree. She immediately fell like a puppet with her strings cut, right in the path of the falling tree.

Perry grabbed her and dragged her off to the side, just as the falling tree slammed into the ground.

"Stupid agents!" he heard Rodrigo yell.

"Stupid evil scientist!" Kiki yelled back.

Rodrigo growled. "Kiki the Fox."

Perry was trying desperately to wake Gypsy. "Come on, Gyp! Please!"

Kiki rushed over to them. "Is she okay?!"

"I don't know," Perry admitted anxiously.

Kiki knelt down beside Gypsy and felt for a pulse. "She's breathing."

"Oh, thank goodness"

"Let's get Rodrigo," the fox said, getting up.

"I need to stay with Gypsy," Perry said.

Kiki bit her lip. "Fine."

"I'm fine," Gypsy murmured, half-conscious. "Go."

Perry kissed her forehead. "I'm not leaving you."

"Kiki needs your help more than me."

"I want to be here for you, Gyp."

"Then make sure that thing doesn't kill any more trees." Gypsy smiled weakly and her eyes fluttered. "That's how you can help me."

"Well..." Perry sighed. "Fine. Stay safe."

Gypsy feebly squeezed his paw. "I will."

Perry smiled briefly and raced over to Kiki. "What's the plan?" he asked.

Kiki blinked in surprise. "Y-You're asking me?"

"Rodrigo's YOUR nemesis, so I figured you'd know him better," Perry replied.

Kiki exhaled. "Alright. Let's focus on getting those axes."

"How?"

"I'm not sure," Kiki admitted. "I'll sneak into the machine and try to find a way in there; maybe take down Rodrigo."

"I'll distract him, then."

Kiki nodded. "Alright."

Perry leapt away and onto one of the axes, waving his arms at the cockpit. "OVER HERE, YOU MINDLESS SLOTH!"

It wasn't the best insult ever, but Perry was under pressure. Another axe swung at him, and Perry ducked, avoiding the swing. He started singing in the hopes of distracting the evil scientist: "I KNOW A SONG THAT'LL GET ON YOUR NERVES, GET ON YOUR NERVES, GET ON YOUR NERVES. I KNOW A SONG THAT'LL GET ON YOUR NERVES, AND THIS IS HOW IT GOES." He paused briefly, then sang it again. And again. And again.

Kiki had to bite her lip to prevent herself from laughing as she crept into the machine. When Perry put his mind to something, he'd rarely fail. That was one of the things that made him O.W.C.A's top agent.

And...one of the things that caused Kiki to...

 _Thinking about it will only make it hurt more,_ she scolded herself. _Focus on the task at hand._


	10. Chapter 10

She got down on all fours and began quietly padding through a small hall. It was smaller on the inside than on the outside, but at least she could actually move. She was being forced to get in a different way than Rodrigo had, which was another thing. But soon, she made it to a vent above the cockpit.

Kiki inhaled deeply before pulling out a tool and silently unscrewing it. She took away the grate, debating as to whether she should go for a full-on attack or an ambush. Rodrigo was distracted, so she could try to sneak past him and get rid of the axes one by one until he noticed.

 _Yeah, that'll work._

The fox quietly lifted up the vent and dropped down into the cockpit. She looked round for a way to disable the axes. _Maybe it's a button or something. I hope there actually IS a way to disable these things… Otherwise both Gypsy AND Perry might be in trouble._

Kiki sighed silently. _I guess I'm gonna have to do this the hard way._

She leapt out of her hiding spot at her nemesis. Rodrigo yelped but she had already grabbed his collar. "Give it up and turn the machine off," she snarled into his ear.

Rodrigo smirked. "You really think you can take me?"

"Yep." Kiki slapped Rodrigo hard across the face.

Rodrigo growled and rubbed his cheek. "You'll regret that, fox."

"Yeah, sure." Kiki slapped Rodrigo again. "Shut off the machine."

"Or what?"

As a reply, Kiki kicked Rodrigo in the sensitive area. Rodrigo growled and threw her off.

Kiki smirked. "There's more where that came from unless you shut off the machine."

Rodrigo growled. "You don't control me."

"No, you're right." Kiki moved fast and slammed Rodrigo's head into the console in front of him, holding it there as her light tone disappeared. "But someone I care about is dying because of you, and if you don't turn this machine off RIGHT NOW, she won't be the only one. Got it?"

"I refuse to obey you!"

"Fine. Tell ME how to do it, and I'LL do it."

Rodrigo simply growled.

"Or I'll just start smashing things." Kiki paused, a grin spreading over her face. "With your head."

She lifted Rodrigo's head and slammed it into another part of the console, causing the panel to spark.

"Alright, FINE!" Rodrigo snapped, pushing one button hard.

The axes outside stopped spinning and started juddering. After about a minute, they stopped completely. Kiki exhaled. "You seriously made that harder than it needed to be."

Rodrigo rubbed his head, glaring at her. "Did you seriously think I would just give up?!"

The fox shrugged. "You never know." She pulled out a pair of handcuffs and fastened them onto the scientist.

"You are arresting me?!" Rodrigo glared at her. "I think not."

"I think so!"

Rodrigo smirked, before kicking her away. Before she could react, he slammed the self-destruct button on the console. Kiki let out a yelp and hopped out the window.

"GET OUT OF HERE, QUICKLY!" she bellowed to Perry.

Perry nodded and raced over to Gypsy, picking her up. The two of them ran as fast as they could. Behind them, they heard a loud explosion. Luckily, they were far enough away that they felt some of the force, but it wasn't enough to hurt them. Gypsy, however, moaned in pain; more plants must have died in the explosion.

"I'm gonna kill him," growled Perry.

"If that idiot didn't manage to kill himself," Kiki mumbled back.

"Didn't you arrest him?" Perry demanded.

"I tried, but then he hit the self-destruct button!"

"Oh." Perry growled. "I hate him even more."

"Now you know my pain," Kiki sighed dramatically.

Perry couldn't supress a chuckle. "Well, we should get Gypsy home to rest. Do you want to come?"

"Um..." A light flush crept up Kiki's cheeks, and she hoped it was blending in with her fur. "Sure..."

Perry grinned. "It won't be awkward, will it?"

"Maybe a bit..." Kiki chuckled. "I just hadn't been expecting you to invite me over."

"Well, I could use the help, since you're the only other person who knows about Gypsy. AND we can work out where Rodrigo might have gone."

Kiki nodded. "Alright."

"This way." Perry began to lead the way back home.

Kiki hesitated and looked over at Gypsy. "So... How is she? Do you know?"

"She's still breathing but I'm not sure if she's unconscious or...in a coma."

The fox bit her lip. "I see..."

"I'm SERIOUSLY hoping it's the former."

"Me, too..."

They got home, and Perry got Gypsy into her bed quickly. He gently kissed her forehead. "Hopefully, she'll wake up sometime today."

Kiki nodded awkwardly, barely able to concentrate through the fact that she was actually in Perry's house. Several years ago, this was exactly what she wanted. Now… It just felt strange. It was probably to do with the fact that Kiki now had absolutely no chance with Perry.

Not like she ever did. But now it was certain.

Kiki exhaled. She'd find someone. Someday. Hopefully.

The fox looked back over at Gypsy. The she-cat was still sleeping, now more peacefully. Perry was sitting next to her, watching over her. "I hope she'll be okay."

"I'm sure she will be," was all Kiki could think of to say.

Perry chuckled weakly. "How close are the two of you?"

Kiki shrugged. "I honestly don't know. We've been assigned to train with each other, and there's probably some kind of bond between us because I'm the first person she told about her powers, but...I don't even know if we'd call each other "friends"."

Perry nodded. "I understand."

Kiki shifted her feet. "I...I'd LIKE to be friends with her..."

Perry smiled. "Then you should talk to her when she wakes up."

"I think I should," Kiki agreed. She hesitated. "And... When she wakes up... I... I think I'll explain to the both of you why...why I always treated you the way I did." She wouldn't meet his eyes.

Perry's eyebrows rose. "Really?"

"Y-Yeah. You were right; you do deserve to know."

Perry glanced down at the ground. "Yeah..."

Kiki bit her lip and inhaled deeply. "I'm nervous about explaining," she admitted finally.

"I won't judge," Perry promised.

Kiki let out a weak and nervous chuckle. "You say that now..."

"It's true. I won't judge. And neither will Gypsy."

"I hope not..."

Gypsy suddenly stirred, letting out a low groan. Perry put his paw on hers and stroked it. "Hey. How are you feeling?"

Gypsy's eyes flickered open. "N-Not b-bad."

"Good." Perry smiled. He lightly kissed her forehead. "We stopped Rodrigo."

"Though he got away," sniffed Kiki.

Gypsy shrugged weakly. "Not a big deal." She grinned. "At least it wasn't my fault this time."

Kiki chuckled. "It wasn't your fault the first time. He's just hard to catch."

"I guess so." Gypsy groaned again and sat up. "I need to touch the earth."

Perry and Kiki exchanged a glance. "Alright. Then let's go outside."

They each slung one of Gypsy's arms over their shoulders and helped her get outside, lying her down on the grass. The cat exhaled, and colour began to return to her paled face.

"Feeling better?" Perry asked her.

"Much," Gypsy nodded. She exhaled deeply again, feeling the grass under her. "Things are a lot calmer now."

"You can feel that?" Kiki asked.

"I don't have a searing pain in my head anymore," Gypsy pointed out.

"True." Kiki hesitated. "I...need to talk to you. Both of you."

Gypsy glanced up at her. "What is it?"

Kiki exhaled. "Gypsy... I think you've figured out part of why I used to bully Perry, but... Not the full thing."

"Oh." Gypsy blinked. "Then please explain."


	11. Chapter 11

Kiki inhaled deeply. "Perry… When we first met… I had a huge crush on you."

Perry blinked. "Wow...was not expecting that."

Kiki blushed. "Y-Yeah. The thing is... I couldn't act normally around you because I…well…wasn't brave enough. So I tried asserting myself around you, and… It went a little overboard."

"You can say that again…"

"From then on, it kind of became a habit," Kiki continued. "Which… I know it's not much of an excuse…"

"It isn't, really."

Kiki sighed and said nothing except, "Sorry…"

Perry blinked again. "Well…I don't know how to feel about this."

Kiki sighed and rested her head on her paws, closing her eyes. "I get it…"

"I'm honestly not judging, but…" Perry closed his eyes. "…I was expecting something a lot worse than that to justify the amount of bullying I received from you."

Kiki squeezed her eyes shut. "No, Perry, I get it. I'm a terrible person for doing that to you and not having any better reason."

"I get why you did it at first. Dealing with a crush is hard, especially when you're not naturally an extrovert. But…Kiki, it went on for YEARS!"

"I know, Perry!" Tears began to form in the fox's eyes. "I'm just gonna get going."

Perry turned away but Gypsy sat up, reaching weakly for Kiki's hand. "No, please don't go!"

Kiki sniffled. "N-No, I have to go."

"Please!" Gypsy wailed. "Please don't go!"

"B-But th-that would be b-best…"

"I need you two," Gypsy whimpered. "I don't just need Perry, I need you."

"W-Why do you need me?"

"You're really tough. Sometimes I think you could scare a fallen tree into coming back to life."

Kiki sniffled. "W-What does that have to do with anything?"

"You're tough," repeated Gypsy croakily. "I need someone like you around. Perry brings the support, you bring the protection." She laughed weakly.

"P-Perry can give you both…"

"But he can't do both at the same time, and that's what I needed today. Perry supported me while you protected me."

"Well…" Kiki exhaled. "I don't think Perry wants to see me right now…"

"Perry's not the one who needs you." Gypsy's eyes were pleading. "P-Please."

The fox hesitated before sitting back down. Gypsy smiled weakly and made beautiful bluebells sprout round the fox's legs.

"That's amazing, Gypsy," Kiki smiled, rubbing her eye.

Gypsy linked arms with her. "You're my second best friend. Behind Perry, of course."

"R-Really?"

"Of course." Gypsy beamed. "In just two days, you made me a way better agent."

Kiki smiled. "I didn't realize you saw me that way."

"Why, do you not see me as a friend?"

Kiki shook her head quickly. "No, I do! I just… I was worried you didn't. Especially after the way I treated you..."

Gypsy smiled weakly. "I get that you have a hard time making friends. I don't hold that against you."

Kiki exhaled. "I think you're way too nice to me."

"I guess that's my one weakness." Gypsy cracked another small smile. "And it's the opposite of yours."

Kiki grinned. "Yeah…"

"Maybe it's good we're friends, then. You can keep me from being too naïve, and I can keep you from being too mean."

"Deal," grinned Kiki.

She shook Gypsy's paw.

Perry then came back over. "Gypsy needs to go to bed," he said, his voice hard.

"Perry, you don't need to be so harsh," Gypsy said firmly. "And I don't need rest right now."

"Yes you do. It's nearly midnight."

"Oh..." Gypsy glanced up at the sky. "Well, I've been sleeping a lot today..."

"I know, but if you don't get back into your regular routine now, you'll find it harder later."

"You're determined to keep me away from Kiki, aren't you?" Gypsy glared.

"That's..." Perry turned away. "...not it."

"Then what is it?" Gypsy demanded.

"I want you to get rest. I love you, Gypsy."

"I love you, too, Perry, but I want to talk to Kiki!"

"You've BEEN talking to Kiki!"

"For, like, FIVE minutes!"

"Well, what else do you need to say to her?" Perry snapped. "Go on, since you'd rather talk to a bully than the person who wants to ask you to be their mate!"

"W-W-WHAT?!" Gypsy gasped.

Perry immediately realized what he had said. "O-O-O-O-Oh… G-G-Gosh… P-P-Please tell me y-y-you didn't h-hear t-t-that…"

Gypsy bit her lip. "Oh, Perry...!"

Perry moaned loudly and buried his head in his paws.

"P-Perry..." Gypsy hesitated. "Are you okay?"

"Y-Y-You really weren't supposed to h-h-hear that…"

"I-I don't mind, Perry."

"B-B-But…!"

"Perry..." Gypsy hesitated. "Why are you acting like this over that?"

"W-We've only been in a relationship about a d-day... A-And that was supposed to be a surprise..."

"Perry...I love you. There's nothing I want more than to be your mate."

Perry blushed. "R-Really?"

"Of course." Gypsy beamed. "And I don't mind when you ask me. Whether it be a few days or a few weeks. I will wait, and I will not leave you.

"G-Gypsy..." Perry smiled warmly. "Thank you."

Gypsy moved forwards and kissed him. "You never know; I might forget. My memory is terrible."

"Maybe," Perry chuckled.

Perry glanced at Kiki, who was still standing there awkwardly. She was staring at the ground now, and Perry felt a bit more awkward, after what he had just learned.

"K-Kiki, I..."

"No, it's fine." Kiki inhaled. "I'll go on and go. I should probably get to bed myself soon."

"Come over tomorrow?" pleaded Gypsy.

Perry hesitated, and Kiki did as well. "Maybe... We should meet at O.W.C.A. instead...?"

Gypsy glanced between the two of them, sighing. "Y-Yeah, I guess."

"Great," Kiki smiled. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Gypsy smiled weakly back. "Yeah..."

Kiki hesitated before leaning forwards and hugging her briefly. "Okay, bye."

Gypsy smiled. "Bye."

The fox walked off, and Gypsy leaned back against Perry, sighing. "I know you're mad at her, but she's one of my best friends."

"I'm surprised," Perry admitted. "I... I didn't think you two would get along."

"Neither did I, but...we complement each other perfectly."

"I guess you do," Perry agreed. "You're nice, and she's...not."

"Perry, I know she bullied you, but she's explained it."

"It wasn't good enough!" Perry snapped suddenly.

Gypsy flinched. "Why?"

"Because she hurt me for years! Almost my entire childhood!"

Gypsy hesitated. "She...regrets it, Perry."

Perry sighed and sat down violently on the grass.

"People do stupid things when they're in love," Gypsy said, hesitantly sitting down next to him.

Perry groaned and leaned back. "I guess..."

Gypsy fell silent and looked away.

Perry exhaled. "It's just hard to grasp that you can you and Kiki are friends now."

"I-I know, and I know it's hard for you." Gypsy inhaled. "Perry...if...if it bothers you so much...I-I can stay away from her."

"Don't." Perry shook his head immediately. "I don't want you to lose a friendship because of me."

"But it bothers you so much, and I love you."

Perry smiled softly. "I love you, too, Gyp. But... I can learn to handle this."

"C-Can you?"

"Of course." He nuzzled into her fur.

Gypsy smiled. "I hope so."

Perry returned the smile, though it was weaker. "Let's get to bed."

Gypsy nodded, yawning. "Okay."

Perry got back up and picked Gypsy up as well. He kissed her forehead and carried her into the house. "I can walk," she protested feebly, not really protesting at all.

Perry laughed. "But I want to do this."

"And...I want you to as well."

"Great," Perry grinned.

Gypsy blushed slightly. She yawned and leaned her head against Perry's chest, blushing slightly. "This...is nice."

"Yeah." Perry rested her on the bed.

Gypsy blushed. "Thank you, Perry."

"No problem, Gyp." He lightly kissed her forehead. "Now, get to sleep."

"I will." Smiling, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Perry chuckled softly and stroked her fur.

"Goodnight, Gypsy."

He stroked her cheek softly.

"Sweet dreams."


End file.
